North county June 3 ballot 'quiet'

While much of the county is involved in hotly debated races for the three seats on the county Board of Supervisors, the Third District is quiet on that front for the June 3 election. The local issues on the ballots in the Third District include the primary for the First District Congressional seat, now held by Mike Thompson, the First District State Assembly seat formerly held by Pat Wiggins, countywide Measure B and the Leggett Valley School District Measure D.

State Proposition 98 and Proposition 99 would revise the California constitution to limit how government entities may condemn private property for development purposes. Currently California and local governments may confiscate private property for public uses as long as the owner is paid a fair price; this practice is called eminent domain.

In June 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a city could condemn private property to make way for another private development project. Until that ruling, the government use of eminent domain had basically been limited to allow construction of public facilities such as roads or parks. Following the Supreme Court action, most states passed legislation curbing the use of eminent domain to take private property for private development.

Proposition 98: Forbids the government from confiscating private property and then turning it over to a private entity for private use. Blocks passage of future rent control laws.

Proposition 99: Forbids the government from confiscating a home from an owner who has lived in the property for at least one year and then turning it over to a private entity for private use. Prop. 99 does not address private businesses, churches, apartments or farmland. If Prop. 99 receives more votes than Prop. 98, none of Prop. 99 will become law.